Waiting
by Realmlife
Summary: Following a recent defeat, Venger reflects on how his life has changed since the Young Ones arrival in the Realm.


**Disclaimer:  
**I do not own the D&D Cartoon. For fun, not profit.

**Author's Notes:  
**Written for the danddtoon community's Ficathon on LiveJournal.  
Prompt: Venger – nothing at all – "New Moon"  
Set some time after the episode 'The Dungeon at the Heart of Dawn' and with a slight reference to the unaired final episode 'Requiem'.

**Note of Thanks:**  
A special note of thanks to Mistress Scribbles for betaing.

**--X--**

**Waiting**

It had all gone wrong. Ever since their arrival it was always the same. They were only children, just six children, but somehow they were defeating him time and time again. They had freed his slaves, emptied his prisons and destroyed his fortresses. Then there was the way it affected him physically. Their last meeting had resulted in another trip to the void, a vast and empty nothingness, without substance, and where he barely existed, only there as pure consciousness with no tangible form.

As usual, it had taken him that little bit longer to escape compared to the last time he ended up there, and the energy needed to return to his body was taking its toll. His power was being gradually depleted. It had been unnoticeable at first, but he could not fail to see the difference now. His repeated visits to the void were slowly but irreversibly weakening his magic. He was sure that he was the only one to know of this, so it was not yet a major problem, but if he did not do something soon, then it was only a matter of time before one of his enemies became aware of what was happening.

He was stood on the mountain top awaiting the arrival of his servant, the demon of the shadows, who he had summoned immediately upon his recent revival. He raised his head and spotted the barely visible crescent in the evening sky. _A new moon_, he mused, before dismissing it from his mind. In a world with three moons and four suns, it was a reasonably frequent occurrence and so it was of no great importance. Instead he devoted his thoughts to the six young people who were causing him so much grief, and remained motionless, waiting, contemplating his next move.

He suddenly noticed the remaining two moons above and gasped, staring at the unusual alignment in bewildered astonishment. All three were in the same phase, a rarity indeed. Two new moons on the same night would be classed as remarkable, but all three was virtually unheard of. He could not help but recall the last time he had known this to occur, a night that had changed his life forever.

He had always craved power and had willingly agreed to serve the being who had offered him his dreams. And so the bargain had been made, all those years ago. He remembered the excitement he had felt when the deal had been struck and the pain caused by the transformation as the transfer of magic had taken place. He had been so sure of himself that night, elated by the whole idea of the glory and supremacy that was to be his, but he could no longer rejoice at the memory.

His master had not been pleased by his lack of progress in conquering the Realm, and since the appearance of Dungeon Master's latest pupils, the gains he had made had all been reversed. He hated them, hated them with a passion, but at the same time, begrudgingly, he respected them. No one should dare to oppose him, but not only did they stand against him, they were actually succeeding. It should not have been possible, but there was no escaping it. His recent trip back into nothingness was proof enough of that.

Six innocents from a far off world, capable of defeating him, not just once, but countless times, over and over again. They were young and pure of heart, but it was not only that which kept them going. It had taken him a while, but he was at last beginning to understand. They had each other, a bond of friendship which he had tried to manipulate and break, without success. It was as simple as that. An unseen, binding force, so strong, that he almost envied them for it.

They were a far bigger threat to his plans than he had initially expected and certainly far more powerful than they themselves could possibly realise. However, their guide in the Realm, his one time mentor, must by now be aware of their potential. It could only be a matter of time before Dungeon Master sent them in search of the key. It was an eventuality that he should fear, and yet, to his own surprise, he did not. He was tired. Tired of fighting. Tired of losing. Tired of the constant dread of his master returning once more. The end was coming; it was just a matter of waiting.

He continued to stand, lost in thought, gazing at the new moons, Shadow Demon on his way to report, and waited, just waited. It was just a matter of waiting.

--X--

THE END


End file.
